Centennial Bank Holdings Inc. will spin off Collegiate Peaks Bank, with locations in Buena Vista and Salida, to the Moore family of Denver, the company said Wednesday.
The bank branches, in the upper Arkansas Valley, don’t fit with Centennial’s larger goal of targeting Front Range markets, said Charles Forster, chairman and president of Collegiate Peaks.
“Centennial concluded that Collegiate Peaks Bank could best serve its customers by continuing as a strong community bank organization under independent ownership,” he said.
Centennial acquired Guaranty Corp., which owned Collegiate Peaks, in September 2004 for $365 million cash from the Moore family and related investors.
Members of the family, in turn, will acquire full ownership of Collegiate Peaks Bank. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The spinoff, subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to close late this year.
Former Guaranty chairman Ron Moore and Forster acquired Collegiate Peaks in 1995. Collegiate has $97 million in assets, about $55 million in loans and $75 million in deposits, Forster said.
Centennial Bank Holdings operates 30 branches in Colorado through three subsidiaries: Centennial Bank of the West, Collegiate Peaks Bank and Guaranty Bank and Trust Co.
The bank holding company had $2.4 billion in assets as of March 31 and has filed for an initial public stock offering.
Staff writer Aldo Svaldi can be reached at 303-820-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com.
